In modern commercial aircraft, the aircraft interior is usually divided into a plurality of climate zones which can each be temperature-controlled separately and individually. Not only is it thus possible to keep the temperature in a specific interior region more constant, because temperature control of a smaller spatial region is always easier than temperate control of a larger spatial region, it is also thus possible to adjust different temperatures in different spatial regions, so the comfort-related expectations of cabin crew and/or air passengers may be individually catered to in the individual climate zones.
At the end of the main branching system there is situated the mixing chamber from which the sub-branching systems come off. The climate zones with a higher temperature requirement than that which is decisive for the basic temperature control of the air supply then only require individual heating of the air conveyed in the relevant sub-branching systems, and, more precisely, as a function of the respective desired value of the supply air temperature of the relevant climate zone. This heating is conventionally provided by targeted introduction of hot bleed air into the sub-branching system or/and by electrical heating units.
The temperature requirement of a climate zone depends on the difference between measured ambient, temperature in the climate zone and the desired value of the ambient temperature. If the temperature measurement in one climate zone wrongly indicates an excessively high actual ambient, temperature, for the relevant climate zone this (wrongly) means an excessively low temperature requirement. If a higher temperature requirement is detected for all other climate zones then this means that the climate, zone with the incorrectly measured ambient, temperature determines the basic temperature control of the air supply in the mixing chamber. Errors in temperature measurement can occur in any climate zone, regardless of the size of the zone. If however this kind of incorrect measurement occurs in a comparatively small or/and insignificant climate zone, for example a rest room for the cabin crew, then this means that the temperature requirement of a very small part of the overall interior region of the aircraft to be air conditioned determines the basic temperature control of the air supply in the mixing chamber and most of the remainder requires individual heating of the air supply in the corresponding sub-branching systems. Understandably this is not very economical. The high heating requirement of the remaining climate zones can also exceed the heating capacity of the available heat sources with the potential result of air being supplied at an excessively low temperature in climate zones that are regarded as important, such as in a first class section.
The object of the invention is to disclose a method of how the air conditioning of a multi-zone interior, in particular of an aircraft, can be configured so as to be economical as a whole and how available heat sources for individual temperature control of the air supply can be kept: more efficiently within the scope of their heating capacity.